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Episode 45
"Fucking monkeys" - Moff Vandon Having escaped the Imperial Installation, the group tries to decide their next course of action. Stuck with abandoning her planet once again or removing the infestation, Duna is forced to make a harsh decision... Session Oro IX, Part I - The Desert Wastes Oro IX, Part III - The Seat Of The Lost Dog * Heading into the complex, they find it pristine, as if no time had passed. Vast and colourful murals adorn the walls, as a stunning night sky mosaic covers the ceiling. * Several statues matching the one in the government building line the entrance, Kodac again adamant they are looking at him. He pulls his gun and begins to shoot them, thoroughly unnerved so far, only to be told that he has done no such thing. * The leftside mural depicts a Zabraki figure, worshiped by a crowd of Purebloods. The rightside mural depicts this same figure bowing before a shadowy mass, with a three-fingered hand emerging to present a colourful pyramid. ** As the group explore and find more of the mural, they see the Zabraki being touched by this hand, before a grand battle scene sees him land on this planet and begin being worshiped by the Purebloods. * At the centre of the room, a small garden peaks through the otherwise depressing environment, though the floating pyramid above it sends chills down the group's spines. ** At the four corners of this room stand grander versions of the statues from before, though with their hands extended out towards the central pyramid. Kodac still fears them, though to the group he takes an unhealthy interest in them, just standing and staring at them for long periods of time. * Four doors head off from this centre plaza, while the far wall holds four slots of rectangular shape. * They head into the south east room, where a divot in the floor hides a slab. ** Duna leaps across the distance, able to land there, before reading the phrase "Through balance, I gain victory" ** Discerning that they need to balance the room to get out of here, Duna and Vesh begin issuing orders for everybody to come in and balance each other to remove the tablet. When Vraeso acts as the counterbalance, he unnervingly pushes too far and sees the floor give way, revealing several long metal spikes, some decorated with corpses. ** Managing to navigate their way back out of the room, Vraeso removes his foot, the floor then descending onto the spikes as the door closed. * Approaching the far wall, Vesh tries to place the tablet in the far right, but is rejected. ** Moving across one slot, he places it in the third slot. It clicks as the corresponding statue's hands move until they cross the figure's chest. * They explore the north east room, revealing a man impaled on four hooks, linked to chains emerging from the darkness. ** Vesh sees the phrase "Through Victory, my chains are broken" on the wall, realising it's another test. ** Tira then spends the next several minutes taking careful shots, though even her pinpoint accuracy fails, the blaster bolts at times seeming to move of their own volition. ** The group asks the man if he's okay, but he struggles to communicate. ** Each blast hitting home sees the chain dissipate entirely, until finally all are removed. ** As Vesh approaches the man, lightsaber ready for anything, the figure groans before dissipating himself. *** A tablet is revealed in his stead. * Vesh then places this tablet in the far right slot, hearing it click again. * They head to the south west room, revealing a simple tablet on top of an urn. ** The far wall reads "Through passion, I gain balance." ** Vesh, Duna and Kodac all try to remove the tablet, some even angrily trying to do so. *** Vesh and Duna even try to team up to remove it, though nothing occurs. *** The tablet stays resolutely, not even budging, until Tira enters and happily plucks it from the urn. **** She then places it in the second slot on the far wall of the centre room. * Finally, the group targets the northwest room. ** Inside it is unnaturally dark, the shadows twisting and moving to remove any semblance of light. ** An illuminated, pulsing, urn sits in the centre, constantly obscured by cascading shadows. ** The far wall is the only thing truly visible here, reading "There is no peace, only passion" ** Vesh enters the room, calming himself to just stroll right to the urn, only to find himself deposited behind the group, causing Kodac to jump. ** Kodac then rushes into the room, wanting to hide away from the statues. He seems to make headway, though the group sees him disappear into the shadows entirely. *** It is at this point Tira decides to tie the group together via rope again in case anything happens. ** As Kodac gets closer to the urn, he sees the shadows dancing, eventually finding himself in a wondrous ballroom, a grand treasure urn at the centre. Rather than shadows, it's gold, and the people are cheerful and gregarious. Everybody welcomes him, dancing the night away with frivolity as invigorating classical music fills the room. He reaches into the urn, and the gold is real. It's solid. He keeps digging to try and find the bottom, but there is none. The urn even seems to adjust to the depth of his digging, as he dives into the urn, swimming merrily in the gold. ** Tira follows in, telling the group to pull her out if she doesn't emerge in 30 seconds. *** As she gets closer, the place shifts again, the shadows coalescing into several Twi'leks. Smeyator is there, as are the rest of his crew. Most astonishing of all, is that the room becomes that of a beautifully gilded hallway, a Twi'lek no older than 30 welcoming her home. He says that her mission was a success, and he is ready to pass the torch to her. She need only drink the liquid in the chalice in front of her, the source of the vial he granted her so long ago. She runs her hands through it, finding it cold and fluid, before happily moving to take a drink. Suddenly she is yanked away from it, even as she tries to head closer to the chalice, and is pulled out of the shadows back to her party, shadows dancing around her hands. ** Vesh then heads in, and ignores anything that is summoned in front of him. At first, it is his nemesis Koren, strolling out of the darkness with lightsaber drawn. Vesh shakes his head, closes his eyes, and pushes through him. He gives a look back, unable to resist, and sees his old comrades stood at Koren's side. Clenching his jaw in sadness, he pushes forward once again, and finds himself at the urn, a tablet held aloft amidst the dancing dark. Pulling it out, he then hightails it back to the group, all a little worse for wear. * Vesh then puts the final tablet in, and with a satisfying click, the tablets all recede further into the wall, the final statue's arms moving much like the rest. * The wall itself then splits in four, each retracting to the matching corner, revealing a vast, empty, dark room. A pulsing stone pyramid sitting atop an altar.... Trivia * The death of Moff Vandon * The Occupation of Dirakan is halted, for now. Category:Campaign Category:Episode Category:Chapter 2